I have a tradition of posting my racing and training goals on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day. While the past years have held a mix of nostalgic to optimistic, this year is truly different. This year, I truly do not know if I will be able to race my bike again.
Of course, I speak with hyperbole, but the thought is in my mind. I have not ridden my bike in 3 weeks. Resting my hip/groin/pelvic muscles did not change anything, so I hope that someone can reveal to me just what is going on. My thinking is that it's a hernia, but I don't know much at all. Time will tell, but I'm impatient.
I can't complain about the injury. I have enjoyed a lot of success with cycling, especially last summer. God gave me incredible legs at certain races, including:
TBC Road Race- I snagged my first upgrade points.
San Tan Crit- I entered three races and finished with the Cat 2/3 field.
State Crit Champs- I won some primes and had fun.
South Mountain TT- I won even though I wasn't happy with my time.
Mount Lemmon TT- I felt super good and finished well overall. That dang Nathan Franklin beat me!
Camp- Thanks to good preparation and fabulous coaching by my dad, I did well on the tests.
National Crit and Road Race- I managed to get two top 50 finishes in a field that intimidated me at first (and still kinda does).
He gave me the opportunity to race L'abitibi, which was a dream come true. I can't complain!
I also had some bad races:
VOS- I went down with the flu and came back just in time to get thrashed in the time trial. I DNS'd, feeling a deep level of despair.
Focus GP- I got beat by the heat and the wind...and bad tactics.
Nationals TT- I raced with no cahonies at all. I couldn't get into a rhythm or make myself suffer.
State ITT- I raced with my back brake rubbing...which became an issue.
As for next year, I do have aspirations. During the off-season, I underlined some goals:
Help Team Winded win a regional stage race- We have very strong riders, and I think I can be very helpful when racing uphill.
Break the South Mountain Junior 17-18 Record- I was a ways off Ryan Zupko's record last year, but hopefully I will be stronger.
Go back to L'abitibi- I would love to experience the pro-like racing that is Tour de L'abitibi, but this time race with a bit more experience.
Most importantly, I penciled out this goal:
Top 5 at the National Road Race- It's one of those lofty goals, but it's worth training for. I pray that I will be able to race it.
I feel a lot of doubt and pessimism (when do I not?), but I am trying to trust God. I lack perspective right now, just as I did when I didn't get to go to Nationals in 2008 and when I moved in 2009. These are only small things in the end.
Time will tell.
No comments:
Post a Comment